I agree with Herman, but would like to go further: my personal preference would be to reserve this list for academic exchange of information, while other venues can be used for creative writing (and expressions of appreciation). I find myself so overwhelmed with the daily influx of email of all sorts that it has become difficult to give due attention to this list. The fact that messages of academic interest are now drowned out by the poets among us, and their fans, makes it even harder to profit from the information that circulates on this list — and may also make it harder to get answers to questions if, as I fear, those who might otherwise be reading the list and ready to answer are, like me, experiencing a sense of inundation rather than distraction.

Arlo Griffiths

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